Paul Sinha

Paul Sinha

Sinha holding the Fighting Talk Champion of Champions Trophy
Born Supriya Kumar Sinha
(1970-05-28) 28 May 1970
Luton, Bedfordshire, England
Occupation Broadcaster, Comedian
Years active 1996–present
Religion Atheism
Awards
Website paulsinha.com

Supriya Kumar "Paul" Sinha (born 28 May 1970) is an English comedian, broadcaster and quiz player of Indian descent.

He is well known for being a "Chaser" on the ITV game show The Chase and wearing a white suit.

Education

Sinha was educated at Dulwich College and St George's Hospital Medical School.[1] While at medical school he developed a taste for the stage in St George's annual revue and refined his comedy as co-editor of the medical school newsletter, popularly known as the "Slag Mag".[2] Sinha is a qualified general practitioner.[3] He is an atheist.[4]

Stand-up comedy

Sinha began performing stand-up while working as a junior doctor in hospitals in London and King's Lynn. His early material drew on his sexuality (he identifies as gay) and ethnicity, with heavy use of puns.[1] In 1999, he came third in the final of the Hackney Empire New Act of the Year.

After several years of combining touring with his nascent medical career, Sinha's breakthrough came with his second solo Edinburgh show, Saint or Sinha?, which earned him an if.comeddie nomination in 2006.[5]

Edinburgh Festival Fringe shows

Radio

Sinha has performed many times on BBC Radio 4, on shows including The News Quiz, The Now Show, Loose Ends, 28 Acts in 28 Minutes, Shappi Talk and Just a Minute. His interest in football (he is a Liverpool F.C. fan[8]) and cricket has led to appearances on Radio 5 Live, most notably on Fighting Talk.

He has appeared as a guest on Midweek, Woman's Hour, Broadcasting House and as a political pundit on PM.[9][10][11]

In March 2011, Sinha presented his own Radio 4 programme, Paul Sinha's Quiz Culture, in which he explored the world of competitive quizzing. His second documentary, The Sinha Test, aired on 14 July 2011 and examined patriotism and sporting allegiance.[12][13] In July 2012, he presented a programme called The Sinha Games on BBC Radio 4 about the Olympic Games and his experience as a Londoner.[14]

In December 2014, Sinha wrote and performed his first series on Radio 4, Paul Sinha's History Revision.[15] A second series followed in May 2016, winning the Rose d'Or for Radio Comedy.[16][17]

Quizzes

After an appearance on The Weakest Link (where he was voted off 4th), Sinha has managed appearances on University Challenge: The Professionals (lost), Are You an Egghead? (lost in first round), Mastermind (4th) and Brain of Britain (3rd). Sinha is currently ranked 10th in the National Quiz Rankings (as of 19 January 2013),[18] and 14th in the World Quizzing Championships (as of June 2016)[19]

Sinha also plays in the Quiz League of London for the Gray Monks.[20]

The Chase

Main article: The Chase

In 2011, Sinha joined the ITV quiz series The Chase as the fourth "Chaser" with the nicknames "The Sinnerman", "The Smiling Assassin" and "Sarcasm in a Suit".

His first episode was broadcast in the fourth series on 8 September 2012. In a 2016 episode, he went through the whole show without getting a question wrong. He also appears in celebrity editions of the show.

References

  1. 1 2 Pendreigh, Brian (11 August 2011). "Interview: Paul Sinha, comedian". Edinburgh Festivals: Festival Previews. Archived from the original on 12 March 2012.
  2. ↑ "Paul Sinha's London". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  3. ↑ "Paul Sinha Bio Pics". Paul Sinha.com. 18 October 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  4. ↑ "Paul Sinha (@paulsinha) - Twitter".
  5. ↑ "Edinburgh Comedy Awards – past winners". comedyawards.co.uk. Retrieved 30 June 2009.
  6. ↑ "BBC Radio Scotland Programmes – The Comedy Café, 15/07/2011". BBC Scotland. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
  7. ↑ "Outstanding Tickets".
  8. ↑ "Paul Sinha Interview". asianchic.co.uk/. 3 October 2012. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  9. ↑ "Midweek 28 Feb 2007". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  10. ↑ "Woman's Hour 26 May 2008". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  11. ↑ "Comedian's Joke Advice for Brown". bbc.co.uk. 6 June 2007. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  12. ↑ "Paul Sinha's Quiz Culture". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
  13. ↑ "The Sinha Test". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
  14. ↑ "The Sinha Games - BBC Radio 4".
  15. ↑ "Paul Sinha's History Revision - BBC Radio 4".
  16. ↑ "Rose d'Or Radio Comedy".
  17. ↑ "Rose d'Or Comedy Winners". British Comedy Guide.
  18. ↑ "British Quizzing Association – Home of British Quiz!". British Quizzing Association. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  19. ↑ "Results - World Quizzing Championships 2016".
  20. ↑ "QLL – team". Quiz League of London. Retrieved 13 March 2011.

External links

Preceded by
Justin Moorhouse		 BBC Radio Five Live
Fighting Talk Champion of Champions
2014/15 		Incumbent
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